Villar cautions public against text scams

Sen. Cynthia Villar warned anew the public not to fall for text messages that use the Villar Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance (Villar SIPAG) or the Villar Foundation to deceive and profit from unsuspecting people.

Villar cited a text message saying that the Villar Foundation has an ongoing contest and is offering cash prizes to winners.

"We urge everyone to be more discriminating and to be more vigilant against text scams. It is not true that our foundation has an ongoing contest or raffle draw," Villar said, adding that Villar SIPAG's projects are communicated through its official website and validated social media accounts.

The lady senator also urged all those who received the scam text message to immediately report to their office, contact details of which can be found on www.villarsipag.org.

"It is not the first time that text scams were circulated to spread disinformation against the Villar Foundation and the Villar name. It is unfortunate that these scammers are targeting innocent people," Villar said.

She also added that they have coordinated with the National Telecommunications Commission and the National Bureau of Investigation and will not hesitate to take appropriate legal actions against the people or groups behind the disinformation.

The Nacionalista Party senator also said the proliferation of text scams prompted her to file Senate Bill 340 which mandates the registration of all users of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards as a deterrent to text scams, misleading advertisements and fraudulent sales promotion.